1. Why Study Sociology?

We study sociology to obtain factual information about our society and different
aspects of our social life. Sociological information enables us to understand our society
more objectively and to see our place in it. The study of sociology enables us to learn
the application of scientific information to daily life and problems. Sociology performs its
most important function when superstition and misinformation are replaced by accurate
knowledge about human behavior. The study of sociollogy broadens our experience as
we learn to discard our prejudices and become more understanding of the customs of
other people and as we realize that truth is relative and “good” and “bad” behavior
depends upon the norms of conduct of the society in which behavior takes place.

2. What are the areas of sociology?

 Social organization
-includes the investigation of social groups, social institutions,
social stratification and mobility, ethnic relations, and bureaucracy. Sub-
specialties are sociology of economics, work, agriculture, industry,
religion, politics, education, health and welfare, and recreation.
 Social physiology
-concerned with the study of human nature as the outcome of how
group life, personality formation, and collective behavior. It studies how
group of behavior affects the individual and vice-versa.
 Social change-Social organization and Social disorganization
-involves the study of change in culture and social relations and
ongoing social problems. It covers such areas as socialization, personal
pathologies, delinquency and crime, family conflicts, population problems,
religious problems, educational issues, underemployment and
unemployment, poverty, civil liberties and subversion, political process,
competition, reform and evolution, ethnic strife, health and welfare
problems, mass communication, the impact of natural disasters, and war.
 Human ecology
 -currently catching world awareness although it is one of the oldest
fields in American sociology. It studies the behavior of a given population
and its relationship to the group’s institutions. These studies have shown
the incidence of mental illness, alcohol and drug abuse, crime and
prostitution in urban blighted areas, and exploitation as well as the
preservation of natural resources.
 Population studies
-concerned with population count, composition, change, and quality
as they influence the economic, political, and social systems, and vice-
versa.
 Sociological theory and research
-concerned with the discovery, development, and replication of
research tools that will test the applicability and usefulness of the
principles of group life as basis for the regulation of the social
environment.
 Applied sociology
-findings of pure sociological research may be applied to such
various fields as marriage and family counseling, child development,
juvenile delinquency, criminology, penology, social work, education,
propaganda, industrial relations, marketing, mental health, ethnic
relations, mass media, and environmental preservation.
3. How is sociology related to other sciences in contributing to an understanding
of ourselves and the society we live in?
SOCIAL SCIENCES:
 Economics
-concerned with the human activities related to the production,
consumption, and distribution of goods, services, and wealth within
societies.
 Political science
 -concerned with political processes, power struggle, and
governments, voting patterns changes from previous elections, and
the nature of voters.
 Anthropology
-covers physical, and cultural and social anthropology. Physical
anthropologist study a wide range of cultures, from provinces to
modern through the examination of artifacts and the genetic
changes of human and nonhuman aspects in life. Cultural and
social anthropologist attempt to study tribes, subcultures or society
as a whole, while they actively participate in the activities of the
community that they are studying.
 Psychology
-mainly interested in a wide range of psychological and behavioral
processes such as learning, human and personality development, perception,
emotion, cognition, motivation, creativity, personality disorders and mental
illnesses. Social psychology is a new field formed by integrating sociology
and psychology.
 History
-descriptive chronology of significant past events. Sociology makes
use of data and information that is provided by historians. In the search of
the underlying forces that influence human behavior, history uses the
sociological approach.
4. Is there a relationship between the biological needs and social needs of a
man?
- The sexual need of fulfillment as opposed to the belonging need of fulfillment.
5. What is the difference between man as biological being and a man as a social
being?
- Man is neither a purely spiritual being nor a simple biological being. Man is a
social being that lives and acts in social relationships. The fact that man is a social
being is the major quality which distinguishes him from other biological beings. Marxism
defined man’s essential quality as the ensemble of social relations. This definition
rendered a historic service by shattering the unscientific, reactionary view which
regarded man as a purely spiritual being or a simple biological being. However, the
definition of man’s essential quality as the sum total of social relations does not provide
a comprehensive elucidation of man’s own essential qualities. Consequently, it cannot
correctly explain the relations between man and the world, or the position and role of
man in the world.
6. Discuss the various sociological perspectives in the study of social
phenomena and society.

- Sociological perspectives, theories, or paradigms, are complex theoretical and

methodological frameworks used to analyze and explain an object of social study.

Theory is informed by epistemological discussions as to the most reliable and valid

methods to use in the conduct of social science. Perspectives also relate to core
assumptions regarding the ontological nature of the social world. Theory is thus
informed by historical debates over positivism and antipositivism, debates over the
primacy of structure and agency, as well as debates relating to other fundamental key
concepts in the social sciences and humanities in general (e.g. materialism, idealism,
determinism, dialecticism, modernity, globalization, post modernity, and so on). Certain
schools of thought, such as structural functionalism, systems theory, and classical
structural Marxism, attempt to emphasize scientific objectivity and value neutrality.
Other perspectives, such as feminist theory, queer theory, and variants of neo-Marxism,
are motivated by normative critique and a concern for the liberation of individuals from
forms of oppression and exploitation.

7. Trace the development of sociology as a science. How did sociology develop in the
Philippines?

- it is academic and applied discipline that studies society and human social interaction.
Sociological research ranges from the analysis of short contacts between anonymous
individuals on the street to the study of global social processes. Numerous fields within
the discipline focus on how and why people are organized in society, either as
individuals or as members of associations, groups, and institutions. As an academic
discipline, sociology is typically considered a social science.
Objectivity
Objectivity is both a central and elusive concept in philosophy. While there is no universally
accepted articulation of objectivity, a proposition is generally considered to be objectively true
when its truth conditions are "mind-independent"—that is, not the result of any judgments made
by a conscious entity. Objective truths are those which are discovered rather than created.